the veterans affairs maryland healthcare system is the first in the state to make this available. dr. elliott steagall is here to tell us about it. what are 3-d mammograms? >> it's a technology that's referred to technically as digital tomosynthesis and it means that rather than doing a single mammographic image in one plane and a second in another plane, we take multiple pictures rapidly and have the computer reconstruct the images so it's the same for mammography as for c.t. chest and abdomen and it gives us significant detail. we can create slices and each slice contains information we can see without the overlap so it increases our ability and confidence in detecting diseases. >> is this specifically good for someone with dense breasts? >> it is although it's also good for women with dense breasts and those that aren't. patients with dense breasts, it's more difficult to make an accurate diagnosis with mammography and with this technology we can look at each portion of the breast separately and it allows us to make a more confident diagnosis. >> so in cases where a woman might